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Upgrading Laptop

Adrenalin

Posted 04 November 2007 - 05:42 AM

Adrenalin

Member

Member

451 posts

Hello people,

I know how to upgrade a desktop PC, well, from trial and error but i know what i am doing give me a laptop however and i am clueless. Never opened one in my life. I was given a Compaq NX7400 and it has very standard memory, vga etc. 512mb etc etc you know. So i was wondering if anyone could point me in the general direction of a site where i can see how to open it and install extra memory and perhaps get a better graphics card? If that is possible on a laptop without changing the entire board. Also what is the max i can put in this thing? HP tells me 4GB, 2x2GB SODIMM slots. True?

Thanks

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james_8970

Posted 04 November 2007 - 02:09 PM

james_8970

Trusted Tech

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5,084 posts

If HP says you have upgrade to 2x2GB then I cannot see why not.
Do you know if the memory is under the keyboard or under the back panel of the laptop.
The graphics card of a laptop is not upgradeable.
James

Adrenalin

Posted 05 November 2007 - 09:11 AM

Adrenalin

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Topic Starter

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451 posts

I'm not to sure where what is, like i said i have never in my life opened a laptop whilst a desktop is another story. I will open it sometime and have a look. Hopefully i wont break anything but i will be very careful and if i do not know something i will just stop and take it to a shop.

Posted 05 November 2007 - 11:04 AM

james_8970

Posted 05 November 2007 - 03:39 PM

james_8970

Trusted Tech

Retired Staff

5,084 posts

Yup, it's one of my favorite sayings.
If you need any help with the upgrade just let me know. Just letting you know, you laptop will not be able to view any more then 3.3GB of RAM under any 32bit operating systems.
James

Adrenalin

Posted 06 November 2007 - 09:33 AM

Adrenalin

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Topic Starter

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451 posts

Ok, so that was as simple as a pimple...

I unscrewed a few things, found the HDD, and then i found a empty space that said "1.8V Standard .... Foxconn" Which to me looked like a ram slot, but is it? And if so where is the other ram slot? I couldn't find it.

james_8970

Posted 06 November 2007 - 12:34 PM

james_8970

Trusted Tech

Retired Staff

5,084 posts

Laptop memory is about half the physical length of desktop memory. There are laptops with only one RAM slot, but it's fairly rare. Look closer, HP might have only installed 1x1GB stick and not 2x512mb sticks. Both of the RAM moduals will be side by side, they actually overlap one another in most laptops to save additional space.
James

Adrenalin

Posted 07 November 2007 - 09:16 AM

Adrenalin

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Topic Starter

Member

451 posts

The laptop has 512mb ram installed, i have no idea where it is, but i do see one more slot, like i explained, that says 1.8v standard. And i'm not to sure if it is a ram slot coz i'm not clued up on laptops. It is about half the length of a normal 184pin DDR ram though. Where is the 512mb installed though? surely the two ram slots should be together?